Peter Chiarelli says the pay window is about to open big time for both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, in that order and those are his first two priorities.

As a surprise to many, there were indications, as was the case back at the trade deadline, that he wants to continue to allow this group to grow together and show what they’re going to grow into. That very much sounded like it included Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.

Chiarelli suggested he had no plans to replicate last year’s Taylor-Hall-for-Adam-Larsson blockbuster or anything remotely resembling it, that he plans to let his defence grow rather than looking to add to it.

Tuesday at Rogers Place, in the annual State of the Union media conference, he declared the Oilers official contenders.

Chiarelli made comments back at the trade deadline that were taken to mean he didn’t think the Oilers were ready to become a Stanley Cup team yet.

“I just don’t know if we were quite ready for it and in hindsight if you look back, maybe we weren’t,” he said Tuesday, prior to being nominated as one of three finalists for GM of the Year . “The players have shown through the year and the playoffs a real resiliency. That’s the type of character, that’s the type of glue, that’s the type of make-up you want in a team. I was very happy with what I saw.

“I didn’t like some of the ways we lost but I liked some of the ways that we won.”

So, Stanley Cup window open, now?

“The window? Absolutely. We’re in that spot.”

Chiarelli admitted this team exceeded his expectations.

“I kind of had us in and around the playoffs. What happens is that the team starts developing a real identity and starts feeling good about itself and that’s what you saw at the end of the regular season. That was a leap I hadn’t projected but it carried into the playoffs.

“Our challenge next year is that we can’t fall back.”

Getting McDavid and Draisaitl signed to their big buck, long-term deals sooner than later would allow Chiarelli to totally know what he’s working with, big picture.

“We have some significant signings we have to do and in a certain order. We can’t sign Connor until July 1. But I have to think it’s going to be Connor then Leon.

“Cap-wise, we’re OK next year. It’s the following year when Mr. McDavid’s contract would kick in so I have to be cognizant of that.”

There’s not a Hall-for-Larsson deal on his horizon.

“I don’t know if we’d do a deal like that again. That was a tough one. I may want to take a break for a summer on that one. I don’t want to delve too much into moving the team’s roster around just because we had some success and I’d like to see it evolve a little bit,” he said.

“We didn’t do a high-end rental deal at the deadline last season because we wanted our guys to grow. Nothing has really changed in the way we are building this team.”

Most of the Oilers’ fan base, I’d wager, are expecting one or both of The Nuge and Eberle to move on, but Chiarelli – who watched the two $6-million players play a big part in the Oilers’ down-the-stretch-drive, but also both fail to score a single goal in the playoffs – suggests not.

“It was their first time in the playoffs and it’s a different animal,” he said. “I have to be careful. With regards to Ebs, he’s a very skilled player and I know there are some things under the spotlight in a negative fashion but he’s a guy in the playoffs for the first time and I like the way he finished the regular season. He was our third-leading scorer and I guess the takeaway from that is we have to be careful how we evaluate him.”

One thing that screamed at you during the playoffs was just how out-classed the Oilers were in the faceoff circle. But Chiarelli is preaching patience more than change.

“We’d like to improve our faceoffs. We need to be stronger. But that will improve with guys working on it. I’m sitting there in the exit meetings with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. He’s getting big. He’s getting strong. He’s six-foot-one and almost 200 pounds. That will come. I can see him becoming a man.”

When it comes to the defence, like it or not that’s where the Oilers are developing as they go.

“I think, for now, I’m pretty happy with the D,” said Chiarelli. “Do we have a championship D core? I’m not sure yet. There’s room for growth and we have to allow space for that.”

The bottom line is the fans probably want Chiarelli to get out there and make more moves. But off the job he’s done here so far with the moves he has and hasn’t made, methinks he should have earned the trust to carry on pretty much as he sees fit.

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